Thesis March 1
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Uncontrollable: A User Experience Design Proposal for a Hands-Free Gaming Accessibility Framework by Andrea Brucculeri Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Victoria Szabo, Advisor ___________________________ Augustus Wendell ___________________________ Mark Olson Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies in the Graduate School of Duke University 2021 i v ABSTRACT Uncontrollable: A User Experience Design Proposal for a Hands-Free Gaming Accessibility Framework by Andrea Brucculeri Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Victoria Szabo, Advisor ___________________________ Augustus Wendell ___________________________ Mark Olson An abstract of a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies in the Graduate School of Duke University 2021 Copyright by Andrea Brucculeri 2021 Abstract The technology necessary for hands-free video gaming is available, especially for head-gesture-centric controls. However, remapping controls to head gestures ranges from frustratingly tedious to impossible. I propose a common language of gestures and game actions that categorizes the controls by their use frequency. My suggested categories are primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary. The most preferred gestures and more frequently used controls are classified as primary while the least preferred gestures and least frequently used controls classified as quaternary. I also propose constructing an interface software and API to gather data from game designers, hardware designers, and users to suggest optimized game controls for users requiring accessibility. I created a demo for one branch of this for my technical project -- a game to help players determine which gestures they can perform the most accurately so that these gestures may be paired with controls most vital to successful gameplay. iv Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my mom and dad, who taught me that love really is the most important ingredient. v Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iv Dedication ...................................................................................................................................... v List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. ix List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ x Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... xii 1. Background ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Why games? ...................................................................................................................... 2 1.1.1 Games and Flow .......................................................................................................... 3 1.1.2 Fiero ............................................................................................................................... 5 1.1.3 Games and the Secrets to Happiness ........................................................................ 7 1.2 Thesis Statement ............................................................................................................. 11 1.3 Summary of Arguments ................................................................................................ 11 2. Video Game Progress and Exclusion ................................................................................... 14 2.1 Gender Diversity in Gaming ......................................................................................... 14 2.2 Racial Diversity in Gaming ........................................................................................... 19 2.3 Physical Accessibility in Video Games ........................................................................ 22 3. Virtual Reality’s Accessibility Dichotomy ........................................................................... 27 3.1 Advertising Virtual Reality ........................................................................................... 28 3.2 The Virtual Body ............................................................................................................. 30 3.3 Virtual Reality is Already Hands-Free ........................................................................ 33 vi 3.3.1 Current Hands-Free VR Experiences ..................................................................... 33 3.4 Better VR for Everyone .................................................................................................. 36 4. Analysis of Controller Structures and Alternatives ........................................................... 40 4.1 Head Motions and Gestures ......................................................................................... 41 4.1.1 Degrees of Freedom .................................................................................................. 41 4.1.2 Eye-Tracking .............................................................................................................. 42 4.1.3 Face-Tracking ............................................................................................................. 44 4.1.4 Speech Recognition ................................................................................................... 46 4.1.5 Sip and Puff Devices, Lip and Tongue Movement ............................................... 48 4.2 Breaking Down Game Actions by Frequency of Use ................................................ 50 4.2.1 Primary Actions ......................................................................................................... 53 4.2.2 Secondary Actions ..................................................................................................... 53 4.2.3 Tertiary Actions ......................................................................................................... 54 4.2.4 Quaternary Actions ................................................................................................... 54 4.2.5 Case Study One: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild ................................. 55 4.2.6 Case Study Two: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe ................................................................... 58 4.2.7 Categorizing Controls Is Nothing New ................................................................. 61 4.3 How Controllers Changed Over Time ........................................................................ 64 4.4 Non-Binary Controls ...................................................................................................... 68 4.4.1 Full Two-Dimensional Controls .............................................................................. 68 4.4.2 Other Analog Controls ............................................................................................. 69 4.5 Controller Map Breakdown: Nintendo Switch Pro ................................................... 70 vii 5. Technical Project: Control Recommendation Demo .......................................................... 76 5.1 Project Origins ................................................................................................................. 76 5.2 Project Goals .................................................................................................................... 78 5.3 Project Description ......................................................................................................... 79 5.4 This Project’s Context in My Larger Accessibility Concept ..................................... 83 6. A Interface Software Concept ............................................................................................... 85 6.1 Game Developers and Game Software ....................................................................... 86 6.2 Hardware and Hardware Developers ......................................................................... 96 6.3 Gamers Desiring Accessibility .................................................................................... 100 6.4 Using the Interface Software to Provide Accessibility ............................................ 103 6.5 Concluding Suggestions to Enhance Accessibility .................................................. 110 7. An Optimal Hands-Free Gaming Experience: My Contribution ................................... 112 7.1 Challenging Normativity ............................................................................................ 112 7.2 Focusing on Universal Design .................................................................................... 114 7.3 A Case for Partial Game Design ................................................................................. 117 8. Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 120 Appendix A : Casual Games’ Accessibility-Friendly